This House regrets the neglect of the agricultural sector in the Philippines and calls on the government to
prioritize its development.
BASIS: Swept away – Philippine agriculture bears wrath from government neglect, Philippine Institute for Development Studies,
Agriculture: A Dying Sector in the Philippines?
AFFIRMATIVE/GOVERNMENT SIDE
Small farmers have suffered greatly as a result of the
government's long-standing disregard for the nation's agricultural
sector. This has been brought to light by the recent super-
typhoons Quinta, Rolly, and Ulysses.
The nation is vulnerable to natural hazards because of its
geographic location and geophysical features. The government's
absence of pertinent policies to support the agriculture industry
and the broader economy, such as disaster risk reduction and
management (DRRM) laws and practices, leaves it incredibly
exposed to threats.
The government's recovery strategy, DRRM plan, actual
implementation, and even the budgetary allotment of calamity
monies are all indicative of how little the Philippines is
acknowledged as a nation prone to natural disasters. There's no
evidence to support the claim that the nation is prepared for
disasters.
The 2019 World Risk Report places the Philippines
ninth among nations with the greatest disaster risk index. Every
year, on average, twenty tropical cyclones make landfall in the
Philippine area of responsibility. However, the modest Php20
billion, or 0.5% share, in the 2019 national budget was reduced
to Php16 billion in the 2020 budget for disaster risk reduction. In
the national budget for 2021, the NDRRMC is once more slated
to receive Php20 billion in lump sum catastrophe monies.
Only 2.2 million farmers on 1.8 million hectares are
insured, according to the most recent data available from the
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in 2018, which was
referenced by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies.
The government's Registry System for Basic Sectors in
Agriculture, or RSBSA, lists over 10.9 million farmers,
farmworkers, and fishermen. This is a modest number in
comparison. Furthermore, despite the fact that 1.1 million of the
listed farm parcels recorded by the Census of Agriculture and
Fisheries (CAF) were smaller than 0.5 hectares, the PCIC
penetration rate in these holdings was comparatively low to that
of larger portions.
Despite living in a country vulnerable to natural
disasters, government support for the agriculture and fishing
industries has always been either insufficient or harmful. Climate
change has made weather disturbances much worse over time,
wreaking even more damage on the nation's agricultural areas.
The agricultural sector in the Philippines is
experiencing a crisis as it grew at its slowest rate in 70 years,
averaging 2.1% annually from 2017 to 2019. During that time,
the industry shed more than a million jobs. This year's third
quarter saw only 1.2% growth in the industry.
The Philippines' agricultural trade imbalance reached its
highest level ever in 2018, and the country started importing rice,
a basic grain, in 2019.
Some points I disagree on this article:
1. The more pressing problem is labor availability not farmers
per se. This can be addressed thru mechanization, etc.
2. Limited education for Phil farmers. Not true. In terms of
GM adoption, Phil farmers are the highest. Meaning, Phil
farmers are teachable or can easily adopt new technologies
unlike other countries. It’s a matter of more support from
Govt.
3. Quality of Fertilizers, Chemicals and Seeds. We have the
highest quality of seeds in Phils. Name it, GM or
Conventional hybrids or Inbreds.
4. Poor quality of infrastructure. That’s before. But nowadays,
Phil's countryside conditions have improved a lot, especially
farm-to-market roads.
The mere fact that local and multinational seed
companies are investing and growing year after year their
business is a sign that Philippine farming conditions have a
bright future.
It seems that there is still hope for Philippine
agriculture. If the government continues to prioritize agriculture
and find ways to develop agricultural policies and infrastructure,
Philippine agriculture will thrive.
However, the government can’t do this alone. This is
the right time for the private sector to jump in for collaborative
efforts and for knowledge sharing. It is essential for all
concerned parties to work together in order to meet future
challenges in agriculture in the "Pearl of the Orient Seas".
Last but not least, for many years, there was a lack of
development of adequate infrastructure for farmers, which would
have helped boost crop productivity. Examples of this
infrastructure include farm-to-market roads, irrigation systems,
drying facilities, and milling centers. These farmers make more
money when they produce more crops. Sadly, things are not like
this in the Philippines.
In this regard, the lack of assistance, education, and
encouragement for farmers from past administrations is the
reason the Philippines is experiencing this kind of issue. It is
obvious that in order to revive this collapsing industry, the
Philippine government needs to work harder to transform the
agricultural landscape of the nation.
What needs to be completed?
There are crucial steps that need to be taken to revitalize
this underappreciated industry if one is to maintain that
agriculture is essential to our economy, society, and culture.
 First and foremost, we must work to reduce or eliminate the
dumping of foreign agricultural commodities onto our
agricultural markets, utilizing both WTO-approved and
potentially non-WTO approved mechanisms. The US's
unilateralism has crippled the dispute resolution process,
making the World Trade Organization (WTO) far weaker now
than it was twenty-six years ago. With careful legal
maneuvering, we can avoid complying with many of its harsh
regulations without facing consequences, as many nations—
including Vietnam and Thailand—are doing despite
objections from the US as well as the WTO.
 The second step in order to stop landlords from reclaiming
land, agrarian reform must be firmly implemented, reinforced
by sufficient support services, and robust legal action made
available. Taiwan and Korea's rural areas became a hive of
prosperous smallholders thanks to a prosperous agriculture
built on successful land reform, which in turn spurred their
industrial take-off in the decades that followed. The
Philippines has the potential to emulate them if sufficient
political will is present.
 Third, the authorities must take on a more proactive role in
development, acting as a support system for small and
medium-sized landholders that cannot be provided by purely
market incentives. Three types of support should be provided:
first, initiatives that help farmers perform better, like credit
and direct assistance; second, legal aid to ensure tenure
security; and third, leadership that offers a vision of a vibrant
agricultural future and helps organize farmers into a powerful
advocate organization.
 Four, we have to get rid of the anti-agricultural prejudice of
neoliberal economists and technocrats who, when viewed
narrowly, view agriculture as a loss-making endeavor that
costs a lot of money and should instead be used, with
appropriate policies, as the engine of a process that leads to
prosperous, equitable, and environmentally friendly growth.
To put it briefly, we need to abandon a mindset that leads to
agrocide.
 Lastly, and maybe most challenging of all, we need to adapt
our agriculture to the demands of a fast-changing climate
and environmental crises. The best way to farm in the age of
climate change is increasingly thought to be small-scale,
ecologically resilient agriculture that integrates cutting-edge
technology with traditional methods because of its low
carbon intensity. Government can help to accelerate the
convergence of small farmers' economic interests and
climate health. These two interests are becoming more and
more entwined.

NEGATIVE/OPPOSITION SIDE